Egyptian Civilization

Ancient Egyptian art is the painting, sculpture, architecture

and other arts produced by the civilization of ancient Egypt in the lower Nile Valley from
about 3000 BC to 30 AD. Ancient Egyptian art reached a high level in painting and
sculpture, and was both highly stylized and symbolic. It was famously conservative, and
Egyptian styles changed remarkably little over more than three thousand years. Much of
the surviving art comes from tombs and monuments and now there is an emphasis on life
after death and the preservation of knowledge of the past. The wall art was never meant
to be seen by people other than the afterlife for when they needed them.
Ancient Egyptian art included paintings, sculpture in wood (now rarely surviving), stone
and ceramics, drawings on papyrus, faience, jewellery, ivories, and other art media. It
displays an extraordinarily vivid representation of the ancient Egyptian's socioeconomic
status and belief systems.
The Ancient Egyptian language had no word for 'art', rather, art served an essentially
functional purpose that was intimately bound up with religion and ideology. To render a
subject in art was to give it permanence. Hence, ancient Egyptian art portrayed and
idealized, not a realistic, view of the world. There was no tradition of individual artistic
expression, since art served a wider, cosmic purpose of maintaining created order.
 The mask of Tutankhamun
Egyptian art is famous for its
distinctive figure convention,
used for the main figures in
both relive and painting,
with parted legs (where not
seated) and head shown as
seen from the side, but the
torso seen as from the front,
and a standard set of
proportions making up the
figure, using 18 "fists" to go
from the ground to the hair-
line on the forehead.
 Statuette of the lady Tiye

This appears as early as

the Narmer Palette from Dynasty
I, but there as elsewhere the
convention is not used for minor
figures shown engaged in some
activity, such as the captives
and corpses.
GEOGRAPHY AND TIMELINE
GEOGRAPHY:

 The geography of egypt is

related to two regions: NORTH
AFRICA and SOUTHWEST ASIA.
 Egypt has the coastline of the
mediterranean sea, River nile
and the Red sea.
 Egypt borders Libya to west, the
Gaza and Israel to the northeast
and Sudan to the south.
Land:

 The ancient Egyptian

thought that the Egypt has
been divided into two
lands: BLACK LAND and
RED LAND.

 BLACK LAND: it was fertile

land near the river nile used
for growing crops.
RED LAND:

 RED LAND: it was the

desert area on the two
sides of egypt to protect
it from invading armies
and seperate it from
neighbouring countries.
TIMELINE:

 6000 BC: early people settled

near the nile valley and start
collecting clay and silt to do
pottery.

 5000 BC: egyptians started

farming sheeps and cattles.
some started growing wheat
near the nile valley.
 4000 BC: sails were used on
ships for the first time. boats
used for the transportation.

 3500 BC: craftsmen created

the wall painting in egyptians
symbols.

 3000 BC: towns and villages

were built. First building was
made of mud bricks.
 2500 BC: pyramid of Giza was
build.

 1550 BC: (new kingdom) tombs

were built in the valley of the
king.

 1325 BC: king tutankhamun was

buried in the valley of king with
covered gold death mask.

 322 BC: Egypt invaded by

Alexandar and then ruled by
greek Kings. New kingdom was
ended.
.

LIFESTYLE
Daily life in ancient Egypt
revolved around the Nile
and the fertile land along its
banks. The yearly flooding of
the Nile enriched the soil
and brought good harvests
and wealth to the land.
The people of ancient Egypt
built mud brick homes in
villages and in the country.
They grew some of their own
food and traded in the
villages for the food and
goods they could not
produce.
Most ancient Egyptians
worked as field hands,
farmers, craftsmen and
scribes. A small group of
people were nobles.
Together, these different
groups of people made up
the population of ancient
Egypt
FOOD
The ancient Egyptians loved
garlic. They also ate green
vegetables, lentils, figs,
dates, onions, fish, birds,
eggs, cheese, and butter.
Their staple foods were
bread and beer. ... Most
ancient Egyptians did not
want to drink water directly
from the Nile.
The Ancient Egyptians wore jewelry to show their wealth and also because they
believed it made them more attractive to the Gods. They wore rings, ear-rings,
bracelets, decorated buttons, necklaces, neck collars and pendants. And only
the very rich could afford jewelry made of gold and precious stones.
Egyptian Belief
 Ancient Egyptian Religion
 Egyptians' believe in interacting with many gods and
goddess believed to be present in, and in control of, the
world.
 Rituals
 Rituals such as prayer and offerings were
provided to the gods to gain their favor.
 Gods For Every Medium
 Individuals could interact with the gods for their
own purposes, appealing for help through
prayer or compelling the gods to act through
magic.
 Afterlife And Funerary

 Egyptian belief in the afterlife and funerary practices is evident in

great efforts made to ensure the survival of their souls after death,
providing tombs, grave goods, and offerings to preserve the bodies
and spirits of the deceased.
 Cosmology

 The Egyptian conception of the universe centered on maat, a word

that encompasses several concepts in English, including "truth",
"justice", and "order.“
 It was the fixed, eternal order of the universe, both in the cosmos
and in human society, and it was often personified as a goddess.
 It had existed since the creation of the world, and without it the
world would lose its cohesion.
Cosmos Was Inhabited By Three
Types Of Beings

The spirits of deceased The gods and goddess

Living Humans
humans
 Kingship

 Formal religious practice centered on

the pharaoh, the rulers of Egypt, believed to
possess a divine power because of their
position.
 They acted as intermediaries between their
people and the gods.
Egyptian Mythology & Religion
 Importance of Myths
 Beliefs that myths express are an important part of
ancient Egyptian religion
 Inspirations Behind Myths
 Myths are set in these earliest times, and myth sets the
pattern for the cycles of the present.
 Creation Myths
 In which the gods form the universe out of primordial chaos
Egyptian Myth Influenced..

1. Egyptian culture
2. Many religious rituals
3. Provided the ideological basis
for kingship.
4. Myth appeared in art in
tombs, and temples.
5. In literature, used in stories
that range from humor to
allegory
 Rituals and Myths
 In private rituals, which are often called "magical", the myth and the
ritual are particularly closely tied.
 Many of the myth-like stories that appear in the rituals' texts are not
found in other sources. Even the widespread motif of the
goddess Isis rescuing her poisoned son Horus appears only in this
type of text.
 Myths Representation
 Egyptian myths serve to justify human traditions and to address
fundamental questions about the world.
 Religious Belief
 Egyptians' interaction with many deities believed to be present in,
and in control of, the world
 Individuals could interact with the gods for their own purposes,
appealing for help through prayer or compelling the gods to act
through magic.
Egyptian Gods

 AMUN-Ra “The Hidden

One” - As Zeus in Greek
 OSIRIS “The King of Living”
 ANUBIS “The Divine
Embalmer”
 HORUS “God of
Vengeance”
INFRASTRUCTURE OF THE EGYPTIAN
CIVILLIVATION
 Egyptian Infrastructures
 The architecture speaks of its times, the culture, and the values and
somehow becomes the identity of the era.
 With time Architecture has been conceived by necessity.
 How Different Is Ancient And
Modern Architecture
 Frank Gehry “Architecture should speak of its time and place, but
yearn for timelessness”
1. Use Of Materials
 A first level study of all modern buildings would reveal that role of stone is
limited to that of aesthetics
2. Genre

 Ancient architecture was

ornamental in nature

 Modern
architecture brutalize in
nature
3. Structure

 Ancient structures were

planned to spread
horizontally.
 Architects today are
more compact plan and
moving the spaces
vertically
 Egyptian Tomb
 Ancient Egypt is known for its magnificent and beautiful tombs.
 Things You Find Inside an Egyptian
Tomb
1. A sarcophagus
2. Four canopic jars containing the
organs of the deceased.
3. Magic Egyptian amulets in the
mummy's wrappings.
4. Copy of the Book of the Dead.
5. Household goods
6. Food
7. Ushabti figurines
8. Wall paintings about the mummy's life
9. Painted spells
10. Statues, carvings and paintings of
Egyptian gods
 Egyptian Pyramid Structure
 The shape of a pyramid is thought to be representative of the
descending rays of the sun,

 All Egyptian pyramids were built on the west bank of the Nile
 Inside The Pyramids

1. Size And Weight Of Materials

2. Intricate Tunnel Systems
3. Alignment With The North Pole
4. Mysterious Shafts
5. Casing Stones
6. Strange Heat Spots Observed
 Facts About Pyramids

1. Number of workers as many

100,000 people.
2. Giza pyramids are guarded by
the Great Sphinx
3. The first known pyramid
architect was Imhotep
4. The three Giza pyramids are
precisely aligned with the
constellation of Orion
5. Pyramid temperature stays
relatively constant.
 Current Discovery
 Hidden chamber in Egypt's Great Pyramid of Giza,
 Egyptian Civilization
Science and Technology
 TECHNOLOGY
The most famous form of
Egyptian technology are the
pyramids.

The truth about how they

are built are still
unknown.

Built Over 4000 years ago

and still stands today.
 THE PYRAMIDS
The pyramids of Giza are
one of the 7 wonders of the
world.

Consisted of over 2.6

million blocks.

The Tomb Of King Khufu.

 THE CLOCK

Egyptians had 2 methods of telling time.

Water Clock.

Sundial.
 THE CALENDAR
Calendar Ancient Egypt Modern
Day
Egyptians made the
first 365 day Days per week 10 7
Calendar.
Weeks per 3 4 or 5
Slightly different month

from our calendar Months per 4 3

today. season

Seasons per 3 4
year
 SCIENCE

The ancient Egyptians were amazing

Scientists
They created many Inventions using
alchemy, metallurgy and astronomy or even
glass making
 METALLURGY
Metallurgy was a huge business in Egypt and was
great for trade and economy
The Egyptians figured out how to extract copper,
iron, bronze from mines and many others but their
greatest was gold
Mines supplied thousands of jobs for the people and
gods were created based on the metals
These metals were then melted down and put into
casts to create the many figurines and extravagant
gold creations that they are known for
They also used similar techniques to make glass,
which was very important in daily life